Netware vs. Windows 2000

[JKSteger]

Okay guy's and gal's I don't want to start a flame here or anything. No big fight but I have extensive Windows NT 3.5 to Windows 2000 Server experience with (very)limited Netware experience. What I want to know is this...

Which NOS is better viewed in the following context?

I have alot of small business clients that are due for an upgrade of hardware and NOS. The only use the NOS for items such as File & Print sharing. If they have a web site it is hosted by their ISP and most have their mail access thru their ISP using POP. I only sell them "True" servers by IBM, Micron, Dell, Compaq and HP (you know the product lines...eSeries, Netframe, Proliant, NetServer etc. so don't think Netvista, Prosario, etc)

Anywho, is Novell Netware a better fit for file/print server with occasional Groupwise for email or is Microsoft Windows 2000 Server what I should have them use?

Please give me valid reasons for both. If you have or are using both internally or for clients please let me know which has had the least problems over the long haul. Things I'm looking for are stability, management, performance, operating cost, security etc.

I know that there are alot of factors that need to be reviewed before making a definative discision but please give me your experience with both so that I can get a good starting point before I proceed.

Thank you all very much,
JKS

[MacGyver]

IMHO, Netware is more stable NOS than Windows whatever. If you choose to go with GroupWise for email, then the good news is that all the mangement functions are centralized in Novell's ConsoleOne. There is also the advantage of Novell's proven ZENworks network mangement system, whereby you can do remote management on all your servers and workstations.

Obviously there is going to be a learning curve if you have not used Netware before, however this is limited to the admin side and not the user side. Printing and drive mappings work exactly the same, the only thing that is a bit different is the Novell Login, but that's just a username and password. Groupwise is pretty intuitive and works just like most email/scheduling packages out there.

Obviously I'm biased because I use Netware everyday, but the best thing you can do is try for yourself. Novell has trial versions of Netware and Groupwise available for a nominal fee. Call Novell to order the trial versions.

[FatalException0E]

I have very little Netware experience, but the exposure to it has made me WANT to get a job with a school district here that uses it so I can get into it more. Netware's NDS makes a great file and printer sharing system. I love the organization and remote management. You almost never have to walk to the computer room to do anything to the server. Also, there's stability.

I had an instructor who found a Netware server with the case off, lying on its side in a janitor's closet. It was running like that for 4 or 5 years. Also, some school accidently sealed a Netware server behind drywall for 4 years, and the only reason they bothered to find it and dig it out was for an upgrade.

Sorry if I've rambled on a bit, but I do love that Netware.

[Dark Millennium]

I have to say that I much prefer Windows 2000 as opposed to NetWare. My reasons are a s follows:

(1) I have had both NetWare and Windows 2000 set up as servers in a small network and found 2000 to be much easier to manage. The main reason being that I needed to access a windows machine for everything I did on NetWare, (I'm talking about managing the server in this instance). This to me was very frustrating as it led to a lot of walking to the 2000 server to do a configuration and then headed back to the desk to work on NetWare.

(2) NetWare is constantly changing the way its products work and what they are called. I had just finished learning about NDS 8 when NDS 8.5 came out using DNS. Learning NDS over again was not an enjoyable experience for myself. I will say however that NDS seems to work much better than Active Directory.

(3) Printing for me was extremely difficult under NDPS as not many companies supported it. In my case I only had one HP printer and I couldn't get it to work. Also you have to setup a broker, etc... which seems like a pain after you setup a priniter in minutes in Microsoft.

(4) NetWare wasn't able to make up their minds for me. I was told by my books and by their website to use ConsoleOne to manage the server. To me this program was very poorly designed as it didn't have the plugins I needed and it was very difficutl for me to add them. I ended up going back to NWADMIN for most of my work, especially for printing as ConsoleOne doesn't support NDPS.

Those are my main reasons that NetWare is not up to speed with Windows 2000. I will say that my experience was limited to the use of NetWare 5.0 and 5.1 so perhaps things work much better in 6.0. I will also say that GroupWise impressed me very much with its stability and I can honestly say I have no grip with that particular product.
So once again I think you should stick to Windows 2000 for your server.Again this is only my opinion.

[JKSteger]

Thanks for the imput. This is the kind of information that I was looking for. Everyone please tell me more on your experience with Netware and Windows 2000 Server.

Thanks,
JKS

[KINGofBLEH]

If the client is looking for a cheap solution and doesnt not care about ongoing support, Netware should be good enough. Windows 2000 would be appropriate if they are using the network for mission critical stuff and support was an issue. Windows 2000 is more stable that Netware when it is applied and used properly.

Just my $.02